Method of reducing fastener irritation and waist droop in a disposable diaper

ABSTRACT

A method is disclosed for making a fastener landing zone within a selected area on the front waist panel of a diaper. The front waist panel and a rear waist panel are stretchable in a cross-body direction, the rear panel having elongated ears bearing mechanical fasteners on inner, body-facing surfaces thereof which are releasably engageable with mechanical fasteners provided on the landing zones. The landing zones are shaped, sized and oriented on the front waist panel so as to impart a tensile force distribution pattern thereacross, directing tensile stresses away from the leg and waist openings while providing a band of abdominal support across the front waist panel between the landing zones.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates, generally, to the field of disposablegarments utilized for the absorption and containment of urine and otherbodily exudates. More particularly, the present invention relates todisposable infant and adult diapers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This application is an improvement over U.S. Pat. No. 4,701,175,assigned to the assignee of the instant application. Disposable garmentsare generally well known in the art and have become an important and anessentially indispensable sanitary protection item, most particularly inthe field of infant and child care where disposable diapers provide forthe absorption and containment of urine and other bodily exudates.Present commercially available disposable diapers are generally unitary,preshaped and prefolded, and comprised of a porous facing layer and afluid impervious backing sheet with an absorbent material disposedtherebetween. These presently available disposable diapers have met aparticular need and have become ever increasingly popular. However, eventhough the present available disposable diapers have achieved a certaindegree of efficiency and effectiveness, several draw-backs remain thathave been identified by mothers of infants wearing the diapers. Thesemothers have strongly voiced their desire to be able to obtaindisposable diapers that are aesthetically neat and attractive when ontheir infant or child. The aesthetically neat criteria have beenidentified as including a trim, slim fit, and a neat fitting waist andlegs that do not allow leakage of urine or feces. It has also been foundthat mothers do not want their children looking rumpled, bulky or messy.In addition, these mothers have expressed the desire to either have adisposable diaper that fits more sizes of babies or to have disposablediapers provided in more sizes.

The typical disposable diaper has a three-layer composite structurecomprising a liquid permeable bodyside inner liner, a liquid impermeableouter cover and an absorbent batt sandwiched between the liner and thecover. Materials now in general use for the three principal elements ofa disposable diaper include various types of nonwoven fabrics for thebodyside liner, a thin thermoplastic film for the outer cover andcellulosic fluff for the absorbent batt. Examples of present disposablediapers are taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,324,245 to Mesek, et al., U.S.Pat. No. 3,196,874 to Hrubecky, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,050,462 to Woon, etal.

Other prior art diaper constructions, disclosed in the references listedbelow, have sought to provide waste containment with a reusable diaperholder receiving an absorbent structure, to-wit:

1. U.S. Pat. No. 3,658,064 to Pociluyko and U.S. Pat. No. 3,370,590 toHokanson, et al.;

2. U.S. Pat. No. 4,425,128 to Motomura;

3. U.S. Pat. No. 2,141,105 to Eller;

4. U.S. Pat. No. 4,397,646 to Daniels, et al.;

5. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,597,761, 4,496,360 and 4,597,760.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,166,464 to Korpman, discloses an elastic fluidimpermeable backing film laminated to an absorbent layer to ostensiblyprovide enhanced conformability to the body surface.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,355,425 to Jones, et al. and 3,644,157 to Draperdisclose disposable stretchable nonwoven panties containing small crotchpads unsuitable for absorbing and containing body wastes.

Even where prior art designs have attempted to use impermeable elasticfilm barriers, there has been inadequate recognition of the functionalproblems associated with an elastic outer cover. Further, costly wovendiaper holders or overpants, designed to be waterproof and reusable, donot offer disposability.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,586,199 to Birring discloses an elastic brief for usewith a conventional disposable diaper. The brief is provided with frontand rear crocheted elastic pieces which exert increased pressure alongthe sides of the underlying diaper to ostensibly hold it in place andseal the edges of the diaper against the body. The crocheting of thebrief, to which the diaper is not physically attached, is looser in acentral area in the front and back pieces to concentrate greater tensionalong the sides of the diaper at the legs and waist. This increasedstress along the sides can lead to undesirable pinching by the garmentat the legs and waist openings, leaving red marks and abrasions on theskin.

British patent application No. 2,185,383, published July 22,1987discloses an integral unitary disposable diaper having elasticizedleg openings and fastening tapes with a tapered user's end, ostensiblyfor wearer comfort and easier handling during application thereof. Theuse of an elastomeric outer diaper cover is not disclosed in thisdocument.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,701,175, assigned to the instant assignee, discloses aform-fitting, self-adjusting disposable garment comprising anelastomeric nonwoven outer cover having an absorbent insert structureattached and integrated thereinto.

Although the above-mentioned prior art garments are provided withelasticized leg and/or waist openings, there is still a tendency for thegarment to blouse outwardly from the body at the hip and abdominalregions and to sag downwardly in the abdominal region. There is also afurther tendency for tensile stresses to concentrate undesirably alongthe leg and waist openings of the garment. Thus, there remains a needfor an anatomically form-fitting, generally self-adjusting disposablegarment which provides additional support to keep the garment fromsagging at the waist and drooping at the lower abdomen.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION AND ADVANTAGES

According to the invention, there is disclosed a method of making afixed fastener landing zone on an appointed elastomeric surface of awaste-containment garment. The method comprises the steps of providingabsorbent means adapted for absorbing and containing body wastes andproviding an elastomeric nonwoven outer cover adapted for holding theabsorbent means in a selected bodily registration when the garment issecurely worn. The outer cover is provided with front and rear waistpanels resiliently stretchable in a cross-body direction essentiallytransverse to a line centered on the longitudinal axis of said garment.An intermediate crotch panel separates the waist panels from one anotherand a pair of sides extend between and interconnect the waist panels,delimiting a pair of elastically contractible or expansible leg openingsalong the sides of the crotch panel and delimiting front and rearlongitudinally opposed pairs of ears separated from one another by thecrotch panel and comprising outermost lateral portions of the front andrear waist panels, respectively. Corresponding ones of the front andrear pairs of ears are engageable with one another to define anelastically contractible or expansible waist opening and the ears areprovided with elongated shapes presenting inner, body-facing surfacessuperposable on externally-facing surfaces of the front pair of ears.Fastening means are provided on the inner surfaces of the rear pair ofears and inelastic landing zones are appointed on given areas of theexternal surfaces, fastening means being provided on the landing zonesto present cooperating fastening means releasably engageable with thoseprovided on the rear ears. The landing zones are selectively shaped,sized and then oriented on the external surfaces, restricting thestretchability thereof within the given areas and thereby imparting atensile force distribution pattern across the front waist panel whichdirects tensile stresses away from the leg and waist openings whileproviding a band of abdominal support across the front waist panelbetween the landing zones when the garment is securely worn.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the landing zones aretruncated inwardly toward the centerline and have hook and loopmechanical fastening tapes provided thereon.

In a further preferred embodiment, the shape and orientation of thelanding zones is selected to direct tensile stresses away from the legand waist openings along the abdominal band of support.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A preferred embodiment of the disclosed invention can be seen in thefollowing drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view indicating the lines of support of thepresent invention relative to the body;

FIG. 2 is an internal perspective view of the invention shown prior towear;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of cross-section 3--3 of Figure 2;

FIG. 4 is a side view of the disposable absorbent garment of the presentinvention shown secured around a baby;

FIG. 5 is a front view of the disposable absorbent garment of thepresent invention shown secured around a baby;

FIG. 6 is a back view of the disposable absorbent garment of the presentinvention shown secured around a baby;

FIG. 7 is a front view of the disposable absorbent garment of thepresent invention showing the disposition of the garment on the wearerafter being worn for a period of time;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the garment of the present invention,showing fastener landing zones of the present invention;

FIG. 8A is a partial perspective view of a fastener landing zoneconstructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 9A is a sequential view showing an alternative fastening systemconstructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 9B is a sequential view of FIG. 9A;

FIG. 10 is an internal perspective view of the garment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 10A is a sectional view of cross--section 10A--10A of FIG. 10;

FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view of the garment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 12A is a schematic view of the front waist panel of the presentinvention;

FIG. 12B is a schematic view of the front waist panel of the presentinvention;

FIG. 12C is a schematic view of the front waist panel of the presentinvention;

FIG. 13 is a side view of a disposable absorbent garment shown securedabout a wearer by the fastening system of the present invention;

FIG. 14 is a front view of a disposable absorbent garment shown securedabout a wearer by the fastening system of the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a back view of a disposable absorbent garment shown securedabout a wearer by the fastening system of the present invention; and

FIG. 16 is a front view of a disposable absorbent garment secured abouta wearer by the fastening system of the present invention, showing thedisposition of the garment on a wearer after being worn for a period oftime.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to the figures, there are shown one or more preferredembodiments to the present invention as would be used in a disposablediaper. As used herein, the term disposable diaper refers to articleswhich absorb and contain liquid, and more specifically, refers toabsorbent articles which are placed against or in proximity to the humanbody to absorb and contain the various solid or liquid wastes dischargedtherefrom, for example, urine and feces and, further, which articles areintended to be discarded after a single use (that is, they are notintended to be laundered or otherwise restored and reused). A "diaper"is a garment generally worn by infants or incontinent persons, which isdrawn up between the legs and fastened about the waist of the user. Itshould be understood, however, that the present invention is alsoapplicable for use in other disposable absorbent articles used astraining pants and the like.

Referring to FIG. 2, according to the instant invention, there isprovided an anatomically form-fitting, generally self-adjustingdisposable absorbent garment, generally shown at 10, such as adisposable diaper, comprising an elastomeric outer cover, generallyindicated at 12, including opposed front 13 and rear 14 waist sectionstogether defining a waist opening and a pair of sides generally shown at15 extending between and interconnecting the waist sections. A crotchsection, generally indicated at 16, is situated between a pair of legopenings 18 delimited along said sides 15 at outermost portions of saidcrotch section 16. Ear portions 20, 22, 24, 26 are also delimited alongthe sides 15 generally between the opposed waist sections 13, 14 andeach of the leg openings 18, respectively, with longitudinally opposedpairs 20, 24 and 22, 26 of said ears being engageable with one anotherabout the body of a wearer. The outer cover 12 preferably has agenerally hourglass or T-shaped configuration, with the leg openings 18cut-out from the sides 15 thereof, defining a front waist panel 28having a laterally opposed front pair of ear portions 24, 26 inconjunction therewith and a rear waist panel 30 having another laterallyopposed rear pair of the ear portions 20, 22 in conjunction therewith.The front 28 and rear 30 waist panels are separated from one another bythe crotch section 16, which is narrowed due to the converging legcut-out openings 18 and extend between the laterally opposed front andrear pairs of ears, respectively, between the corresponding waistsections and the leg openings as shown in the figures.

With continuing reference to FIG. 2, and also to FIG. 3, there isdepicted an absorbent insert structure, generally indicated at 32,substantially superposable on the front 28 and rear 30 panels and thecrotch section 16 of the outer cover 12 for absorbing and containingbodily exudates, particularly urine and feces. The absorbent structure32 includes: a liquid permeable bodyside liner 34, for example, acommercially available pattern-bonded, spunbonded polypropylene web thatmay have a basis weight of from about 0.2 to 0.8 oz./yd².; a liquidimpermeable barrier 36, for example, a commercially available plasticfilm of polypropylene or the like; and an absorbent core 38 disposedtherebetween. As shown in FIG. 11, the absorbent structure 32 is in theform of a separate insert, typically of materials which aresubstantially nonstretchable, attached and integrated into theresiliently stretchable outer cover 12, preferably using autogenousbonds of the type generated thermally or ultrasonically, while allowingsubstantially unrestricted functional stretchability of the outer coverin a manner hereinafter described. A preferably continuous ultrasonic orthermal perimeter bond 40 sealingly secures the absorbent structure 32together to prevent leakage therefrom by bonding the liner 34 andbarrier 36 peripherally to one another, making the liner and barriercoterminous with one another, about the absorbent core 38 disposedtherebetween. It is important that the materials of the barrier 36 andliner 34 be compatible with one another and with the material of theouter cover 12 for autogenous bonding. Accordingly, polypropylene andother polyolefins or polyolefin blends have been found to be suitableand economical polymeric materials for use in the liner, barrier andouter cover of the instant garment 10.

The outer cover 12 generally comprises an air-permeable, i.e.,"breathable", elastomeric nonwoven material, particularly astretch-bonded laminar fabric wherein an elastic nonwoven web is joinedto one or more gatherable nonwoven webs of the type described in greaterdetail herein. Preferably, the nonwoven laminate is resilientlystretchable from about 20 to about 200 percent in an essentiallycross-body direction 41 which is transverse to a longitudinal axis ofthe garment.

The longitudinally opposed ears 20, 24, 22, 26, which are engageableabout a wearer, are releasably fastenable with one another, formingfull-length closures extending substantially from the waist to the legopenings of the outer cover. The full-length closures further providedimensional integrity to the resiliently stretchable garment duringvarious and even extreme bodily movements and positions of the wearer.Since the garment is form-fitting and self-adjusting, it does not gap orcollapse at the hip and waist regions. The various fastening systemsused in the invention are also detailed herein.

Preferably, the waist sections 13, 14 of the outer cover 12 have theinsert 32 attached and integrated thereinto by attachment meansaccording to the present invention as will be set forth more fullybelow.

With respect to the attachment means of the present invention as shownin FIGS. 2 and 3, it is important to minimize the number of bonds andtotal bond area used in integrating the relatively unstretchableabsorbent insert to the stretchable outer cover or, where forming hems,the number of bonds used to bond the outer cover to itself. TheApplicants have discovered that the number of bonds correspondinglyaffects the stretch elongation in the elastomeric component that isbonded. Not only does a lesser number of bonds result in less stretchloss, but the greater the spacing apart of bond points, the less stretchelongation is affected. Accordingly, bonding patterns should be selectedthat significantly reduce the amount of stretch lost by means of thedensity and spacing of the bond points. Specifically, the lower thenumber and density of the bonds 44 for attaching and integrating theinsert 32 along the waist sections 13, 14, the less stretch is inhibitedin said waist sections. For example, if the waist section is stretchablein a cross-body direction and the insert is attached thereto at twopoints lying on a line extending also in said cross-body direction, thenthe stretchability of the outer cover waist section along that line isrestricted between those two points of attachment by the leaststretchable element present between those points, such as the liner andbarrier of the insert or, further, the absorbent core which may be gluedto the barrier with, e.g., hot melt construction adhesive. Similarly,the insert may also be attached and integrated at the crotch section.

Therefore, the garment of the present invention includes attachmentmeans for attaching and integrating the absorbent insert structure 32,which is generally inelastic, into the relatively resilientlystretchable elastomeric outer cover which is used for positioning theinsert in a selected bodily registration, while allowing substantiallyunrestricted functional stretchability thereof. Thus, the total garmentis maintained anatomically form-fitting and generally self-adjusting.

These and other objectives have heretofore been addressed by Applicant'sprior copending application Ser. No. 947,947, filed Dec. 31, 1986, nowU.S. Pat. No. 4,770,656, the entire disclosure of which is expresselyincorporated by reference herein and relied upon. Referring to FIGS. 2and 4-7, full-length closures of the type disclosed in this referencedapplication may have cooperating primary closures, e.g., snaps, adjacentthe waist and leg openings of each full-length closure, and cooperatingsecondary closures, e.g., hook and loop tapes, extending between each ofthe cooperating pairs of primary closures.

The instant garment 10 is generally constructed and assembled as shownin FIG. 2 and, with respect to other alternative embodiments, in FIGS.10 and 11. The bonds 44 attach and integrate the opposed longitudinalends 48, 50 of the absorbent insert 32 to said outer cover 12 atselected front 52 and rear 54 waist attachment zones along said front 13and rear 14 waist sections, respectively, defining one or more free-spanzones 56 underlying said insert 32 wherein the functional stretchabilityof said outer cover in said free-span zone 56 is substantiallyunrestricted. It will be understood that where the insert 32 isintegrated only at the waist attachment zones 52, 54, i.e., not at thecrotch section 16, the free-span zone wherein the outer coverstretchability is substantially unrestricted underlies the entirelongitudinal span of the absorbent insert 32. Significantly, thefree-span zone 56 also includes those portions of the waist sections 13,14 not included in the waist attachment zones 52, 54. It will also beunderstood that the insert 32 may be adequately held by the outer cover12 in registration with the body of the wearer without significantsideways shifting. Additional bonding of the insert in the free-spanzone 56 to the front 28 or rear 30 panels or the crotch section 16 isnot required.

Although the free-span zones 56 can be provided in either of the front28 and rear 30 panels, it is important that the rear panel 30 havesubstantially unrestricted stretch properties from waist to leg acrossthe lateral span of the rear panel 30 from one of the rear pair of ears24 to the other ear 26. Cross-body direction stretch of the crotchsection 16 of the outer cover 12 during use is minimally required sothat bonding of the insert 32 at or near the leg openings 18 of thecrotch section 16 does not significantly affect the overall cross-bodystretch properties of the outer cover, that is, the ability to beresiliently stretchable across the area defined by the front 28 or rear30 waist panels.

The breathable outer cover 12 which, among other functions, holds theinsert 32 in proper bodily registration, is not itself required toprovide a liquid waste-containment barrier, unlike the prior art. Infact, application Ser. No. 947,942 also teaches a garment having adisposable insert which may be removed and replaced using snaps or thelike, so that the outer cover becomes reusable, in this regard, thegarment of the instant invention could also have a reusable outer coverand disposable insert system.

Referring again to FIG. 11, the absorbent insert 32 may further compriseat least one but preferably a pair of front 62 and rear 64 waistattachment flaps respectively situated at the opposed longitudinal ends48, 50 of the insert 32. The flaps 62, 64 extend longitudinally from andcontiguous with the liner 34 beyond the terminal ends of the absorbentcomposite 38, the flaps being bonded or otherwise attached to said front13 and rear 14 waist sections, respectively, in said waist attachmentzones 52, 54. The front 13 and rear 14 waist sections preferably havefinished waist hems 66 along the waist opening wherein the waistattachment flaps 62, 64 are entrapped and bonded. The waist hems 66comprise inwardly folded-over edges of said waist sections 13, 14. Thewaist attachment flaps 62, 64 (FIG. 11) may comprise coextensions of thebarrier 36 and liner 34 or may comprise extensions of either the barrier36 or liner 34 alone. Although the flaps 62, 64 typically comprise anonwoven liner and plastic film materials that are not inherentlystretchable relative to the outer cover 12, the flaps 62, 64 themselvesneed not be contiguous with the liner or barrier material.

Referring to FIGS. 2, 4, 5 and 7, according to the instant invention,there is provided an abdominal support band 65 attached to the frontwaist panel 28 and extending in the essentially cross-body directionindicated by arrow 41 across at least the central portion of the frontwaist panel 28. The abdominal support band 65 has a modulus ofelasticity which is selected to either be greater or less than themodulus of elasticity of the front waist panel 28 in the essentiallycross-body direction 41, depending on the desired fit characteristics ofthe garment 10. Where contractability of the garment 10 is employed inorder to achieve the desired fit for a range of body sizes, the outercover 12 will be sized to fit larger body sizes within the given rangeand then supplemental elasticization in the waist and legs is providedto shorten the garment openings to fit the torso and thighs of aparticular wearer. In this case, the supplemental elastics, such as theleg elastics 58 and the abdominal support band 65, must have a modulusof elasticity selected to provide a greater tension than the remainingportions of the outer cover to which the elastics 58, 65 are notattached. Conversely, where expansibility of the garment is employed toachieve the desired fit characteristics of the outer cover, the outercover 12 is sized to fit smaller sized individuals within the givenrange of sizes, utilizing the inherent stretchability of the outer covermaterial to expand and accommodate the dimensions of the torso and legsof a particular wearer. The abdominal support band 65 may be an extrudedelastomeric film or nonwoven material which, in the case where the band65 has a greater tension than the remainder of the front panel, beattached to the front panel in a stretched condition with, for example,adhesive, or, in the case where the support band 65 has a lower modulusof elasticity than the remainder of the front panel 28, the support bandmay comprise a band of the outer cover which has been bonded, eitherautogenously by thermal or ultrasonic means, or adhesively by attachingan adhesive piece to the front waist panel 28, thereby negating thestretch properties of the band which is thus bonded.

Referring to FIG. 1, the waist opening W defined by the front 13 andback 14 waist sections of the diaper is the desired positioning forproper fit of the garment of the present invention. The natural supportline for the diaper, designated by the letter S, runs from the small ofthe back, over the hip and on the lower side of the protruding stomach.The distance from the small of the back up to the waist is representedby the designation d₁ and d₂ represents the distance from the supportline S to the waist opening W. The distance d₂ is longer than thedistance d₁ by about 1 to 3 inches. By providing disposable diapers witha support band located about 1 to 3 inches below the waistband, thediaper will be held in position better with less front panel drop thanis seen in currently available commercial diapers. The panels 28, 30will be held up from below the support band. The support band can take anumber of forms. First, in a conventional unitary disposable diaper, theband could be an elastomeric material stretched then attached to theouter cover so as to contract the plastic film outer cover and provide acontractible force along the support lines (not shown).

The band 65 can be located in the front waist panel only, the rear panel30 as well or a portion only of the front and back. Elastic waistbandscurrently provided in disposable diapers do not serve the function ofthe instant support band 65 since they provide mainly an aestheticnonsupporting waist line appearance, e.g., along the line W.

Referring again to FIG. 2, additional elastication or bonding betweenother areas of the outer cover 12 and absorbent insert 32 may beprovided. Specifically, supplemental leg elastics 58 may be applied tooutermost portions of the crotch section 16 around the inner curvatureof the leg openings 18 to gather the garment 10 about the thighs of thewearer. Crotch elastics 60 may be applied to the liner 34 to cause theinsert to more closely conform to the contours of the wearer's perinealregion.

The leg elastics 58 preferably comprise a breathable elastomericnonwoven laminate of the type described in said prior copending U.S.Pat. application Ser. No. 947,947 of applicant. The leg elastic members58 function cooperably with the stretchable outer cover for gatheringthe leg openings 18 about the wearer and can be applied in varyingtensions relative thereto by adhesive, autogenous or pressure bonding.Leg hems (not shown) may alternatively be formed at the curved legopenings 18 in addition to the waist sections 13, 14, resulting inincreased tension due to the increased thickness of the elastomericmaterial of the outer cover at the folded over hem. For this purpose,additional elasticized gathers (not shown) of, e.g., FULLASTIC®, atrademarked extruded elastomeric film material sold by H. B. FullerCompany of Minneapolis, Minn., can be entrapped within the waist hems 66and any leg hems (not shown) to provide such additional elasticgathering. Although the waist opening has heretofore been discussed inconjunction with waist hems 66 and optional waist elastics entrappedtherein, a nonwoven elastomeric laminar material of the type describedfor the leg elastics 58 could be applied as a border strip (not shown)along the waist sections 13, 14 defining the waist opening.

As can be seen in FIG. 11, the barrier 36 closely surrounds the bottom68, and sides 70 of the absorbent core 38 (shown in phantom) with theliner 34 extending across and contacting the top surface of theabsorbent core 38, imparting a generally rectangular boat-shapedconfiguration to the insert 32. The bottom 68 of the barrier 36 mayinclude one or more relaxed localized areas adjacent the bottom 68 ofthe absorbent core 38 to accommodate swelling of the core occurringduring use with, for example, a hydrogel material. The perimeter bond 40making the liner 34 and barrier 36 coterminous substantially around theabsorbent core 38 may comprise either intermittent bonds or, preferably,a continuous autogenous, i.e., ultrasonic or thermal, bond. Theperimeter bond 40 is preferably undulatory along the intermediateportion of the core 38, imparting a scalloped edge for greaterflexibility therein.

Significantly, the absorbent structure 32 may be integrated into theouter cover 12 in the waist attachment zones 52, 54 while the outercover is at least partially stretched in the cross-body direction 41.Preferably, the longitudinal length of the free-span zone 56 in thefront 28 and rear 30 panels is at least about 2.5 inches or thelongitudinal length between the waist and leg openings.

A preferred method of integrating the absorbent insert structure 32 intothe resiliently stretchable breathable outer cover 12 and assembling theinstant disposable absorbent garment 10 comprises the steps of providingthe outer cover 12 with opposed front 13 and rear 14 waist sections, acentral crotch section 16, front 28 and rear 30 waist panels extendingbetween the crotch and the waist sections, prestretching the outer covermore than about 20%, preferably from about 20% to about 200%, in thecross-body direction 41 while superposing the insert 32 upon the outercover, then bonding the longitudinally opposed ends 62, 64 of the insertto the waist sections 13, 14 in the selected waist attachment zones 52,54, defining one or more free-span zones 56 allowing substantiallyunrestricted functional stretchability of the outer cover 12 underlyingthe free-span zones 56 (FIG. 10). One aspect of the present integrationmethod comprises the step of inwardly folding over the outermost edgesof the waist sections 13, 14 forming waist hems 66 entrapping thelongitudinally opposed ends 62, 64 of the absorbent insert therein andbonding the opposed ends 62, 64 of the insert within the waist hems 66at the waist attachment zones 52, 54 (FIGS. 10 and 11). As disclosedabove, however, the waist opening may be elasticized by a breathableelastomeric nonwoven laminar border strip rather than elastomeric waisthems.

With respect to the physical properties required of the fastening systemshown in FIG. 2, it has been found that the primary closures adjacentthe leg and waist openings should have a peel strength from about 600grams to about 2,500 grams, depending upon the outer cover material andthe ability or strength of the parent or other user to open theclosures. The secondary closures should have a shear strength greaterthan about 3,750 grams per square inch. The full-length closuresmaintain the dimensional integrity of the garments with minimal saggingof the waist or gapping and blousing at the hips during wear. Thecombination of desired peel and shear strength ranges for the fasteningsystem shown in FIG. 2 is also applicable to the alternative fasteningsystem shown by FIGS. 8-16, that is, the fastening system should have acombined peel strength in the 600 gram to 2,500 gram range and shearstrength greater than about 3,750 grams per square inch, as determinedby the measurement methods set forth in said application Ser. No.947,947.

FIGS. 4-7 show a disposable diaper 10 of the instant invention as itwould be worn by a baby wherein the disposable diaper has a neat, trim,anatomically form-fitting appearance when viewed from differentperspectives. Particularly, there is shown in FIGS. 4, 5 and 7 theproper positioning of the diaper 10 on a wearer during use, as aided bythe abdominal support band 65.

Referring to FIG. 4, the elasticized waist sections 13, 14 define awaist opening providing, at least in part a fit line W which correspondsto the lower umbilical region of a wearer, for optimal anatomicalconformity and aesthetic appearance of the garment 10 when securelyworn. Spaced from the waist sections 13, 14, the abdominal support band65 extends angularly downwardly relative to said front waist section 13defining, at least in part, a natural abdominal support linecorresponding generally to a line extending anteriorly about the bodyfrom the dorsal side of the transtubercular plane over the iliac crestsand across the abdominal hypogastric region of a wearer.

FIG. 7 illustrates the self-adjusting functionality of the diaper aidedby the abdominal support band 65, as shown by the minimal extent thediaper moves or sags from an initial position as indicated by the dashedlines 18'and 13'after being worn by an infant for a period of time.

Although the abdominal support band 65 discussed above in conjunctionwith Figures 1, 2 and 4-7 does provide a natural support linecorresponding to the lower abdominal region of the wearer, the supportband 65 provides only a limited degree of distribution of the tensilestresses across the front waist panel when the diaper is worn. Duringwear, it is desirable to direct tensile stresses away from thoseportions of the leg and waist openings that typically experience redmarking. The placement and positioning of a fastening system which isnonstretchable can reduce forces near the leg opening and direct forcesacross the outer cover to support the absorbent, especially when wet,resulting in reduced diaper sag and droop, as will be shown herein inconjunction with FIGS. 8-16.

Referring to FIG. 8, there is depicted a disposable diaper 10 having theabsorbent structure 32 attached and integrated within the elastomericnonwoven outer cover 12. The front 28 and rear 30 waist panels areresiliently stretchable in the cross-body direction 41 and areengageable with one another to define a waist opening along theuppermost edges of the waist sections 13, 14. The sides 15 extendbetween and interconnect the waist sections, delimiting the pair of legopenings 18. The leg openings 18 may be either elastically contractibleto gather the garment about the legs of a wearer or may be expansible,depending upon the particular fit parameters desired. The rear pair ofears 20, 22 define elongated shapes presenting inner, body-facingsurfaces superposable on externally-facing surfaces 74 of the front pairof ears 24, 26, as shown in FIG. 8. A pair of inelastic landing zones,generally indicated at 70, are appointed within given areas (shown bythe phantom lines 72 in FIG. 8A, 10 and 11) of the external surfaces 74of the front pair of ears. The landing zones 70 have fastening means,generally indicated at 76, provided thereon which are releasablyengageable with fastening means, also indicated at 76, provided on theinner surfaces 78 of the rear pair of ears, as shown in FIG. 11. Thelanding zones 70 are selectively shaped, sized and oriented on theexternal surfaces 74 of the front ears so as to impart a tensile forcedistribution pattern directing stresses away from the leg 18 and waistopenings defined by the waist sections 13, 14, while providing a band ofabdominal support across the front waist panel 28 when the garment issecurely fastened about a wearer, as will be appreciated with referenceto the discussion herein.

Referring again to FIG. 8, the landing zones 70 may be shaped in agenerally rounded or angular polygonal area. The width of the polygon(FIGS. 8 and 8A) narrows preferably, tapering in order to graduallyconcentrate forces away from the waist opening and the leg openings. Theplacement and positioning of the fastener landing zones 70, which arenonstretchable, define areas in a stretchable diaper, such as the frontwaist panel 28, which define regions of higher tensile forcestherebetween, depending on the distances between points on the landingzones 70 and the stress/strain properties of the materials used for theouter cover 12. In this manner, tensile forces in the diaper can bedirected to desired regions. Fastener position can, therefore, reduceforces near the leg openings and/or direct forces in the outer coveracross an absorbent pad held therein to reduce diaper sag and droop.This is because a nonstretchable component bonded to a stretchablematerial eliminates stretch in the bonded region. When a fastener isbonded to a stretchable outer cover such as in the instant invention,the fastener shape generates zones where the outer cover must stretch toa greater extent and thus is at higher tension as defined by itsstress/strain curve. Referring to FIG. 12A, triangularly shaped landingzones 70 direct forces across the front panel 28 to increase tension atthe hips generally along the line A. The tension generated between thelanding zones is proportional to the distance between fixed points onthe landing zones, for example, the tension generated between end pointsof the segment A is greater than that generated along the line B, whichis, in turn, greater than that generated along the line C. Such alanding zone placement operates to increase tension in the hip regionsof the front panel 28. In similar fashion, the landing zone placementmay be selected to increase tension at the waist opening, as shown inFIG. 12B wherein tension is greatest generally along the line A, withlines B and C representing lessening tensions approaching the legopenings 18. To increase tension in a localized region, it is necessary,as discussed above, to define a given area which represents anonstretchable zone. This may be accomplished with either a bonded pieceof material, or simply a bond pattern, as shown in FIG. 8A, wherein thegiven area 72 is surrounded by a series of autogenous, for example,ultrasonic bonds 80 conforming to the shape of the given area 72 andthereby defining the landing zones 70. The fastener landing zones 70shown in FIGS. 8, 8A and 12C direct tensile forces away from both theleg and waist openings by providing the landing zones 70 with generallytriangular shapes which direct forces along a central line A bisectingthe landing zones, wherein the tensile forces generated along the line Aare greater than those generated between the landing zones along thelines B (FIG. 12C).

Where the landing zone is delimited by a closed pattern of ultrasonicbonds 80, as shown in FIG. 8A, the hook component 82 of the fasteningmeans 76 may be attached in a strip as shown and need not cover theentire landing zone 70, allowing smaller amounts of costly fastenermaterial to be used; however, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 11, the landingzones 70 could comprise entire pieces of fastener material. Thefastening means provided on the landing zones 70 and on the innersurfaces 78 of the rear pair of ears 20, 22, preferably comprises hookand loop fastening tapes of the type which are well known in the art andavailable from companies such as, for example, Velcro, U.S.A., Inc.Nevertheless, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art thatother forms of mechanical or even adhesive fastening means could be usedin the diaper of the present invention. Preferably, where hook and loopfasteners are used, the loop portion 82 should be located on the inner,body-facing surfaces 78 of the rear pair of ears 20, 22 and the harsherhook portions 84 should be located on the landing zones 70, as shown inFIG. 11 to minimize potential skin contact therewith. It is preferableto further isolate the harsh hook portions 84 from possible contact withthe skin of a wearer's leg by forming flaps 86 which cover a lowermarginal portion of the hook material. The flaps 86 may be formed byoutwardly folding over marginal edges of the leg openings 18 adjacentthe front waist panel 28, as shown in FIG. 8.

Alternatively, the front ears may be further elongated in a cross-bodydirection and the landing zones tapered and elongated so that theirwidth narrows distally in a direction away from the centerline, therebyenabling the fastening means to be secured together along substantiallythe full tapered length of the landing zones to provide a longer closurealong the sides of the garment, where desired, between the front andrear waist panels from the leg openings to the waist openings, whileavoiding fastener-skin contact (not shown).

Referring to FIGS. 9A, 9B and 12C, there is shown an alternative to thefastening system constructed in accordance with the present invention.Not only is it possible to minimize the amount of material used for thehook component 84 used as a mechanical fastening element on the landingzone 70 (FIG. 8A), but it is also possible to minimize the amount ofloop material 82 utilized on the body-facing surfaces 78 of the rearpair of ears, of which a representative ear 22 is illustratively shown.With further reference to FIGS. 9A and 9B, there is shown an adjustablecombination fastening system wherein the rear pair of elongated ears 22comprise proximal portions 88 equidistantly spaced from the centerline,user end portions 90 spaced distally from the proximal portions 88 andelastomeric medial portions 92 adjustably spacing the user portions 90from the proximal portions 88. The hook component 84 of the mechanicalfastening means 76 is provided on the landing zones 70 appointed on theexternally-facing surfaces 78 of the front ears 24, 26, of which asingle front ear 26 is illustratively shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B.Fixed-position mechanical fastening means, such as the snaps generallyindicated at 94, are provided on the external surface 74 of the frontear 26 and the bodyside surface 78 of the rear ear 22. The hook 84 andloop 82 components on the landing zones 70 and the proximal portion 88of the rear ear 22, respectively, comprise variable-position mechanicalfastening means which are initially engaged when fastening the diapergarment 10, as shown in FIG. 9B. Once the strip of loop component 82 isengaged at a desired location with the hook component 84 on the landingzones 70, the user end 90 bearing the snap element 94 may be stretchedto cover the remainder of the hook component 84, as shown by thesequential arrows 96 (FIG. 9B) and 98 (FIG. 9A) sufficiently to allowthe mating snap elements 94 to be engaged with one another. In thismanner, the medial portion 92 of the rear ear imparts a certain degreeof adjustability to the mechanical fastening means, while providing asecure fixed snap engagement which is more resistant to tampering by achild. FIG. 12C illustrates the placement of the fixed-positionfastening means 94 with respect to the landing zones 70. In thisarrangement, the fixed-point fastening means 94 are functionally a partof the landing zones 70 and define a shortest distance A therebetweenwherein the tensile forces in the front waist panel 28 concentrate andare of the greatest magnitude relative to the tensile forces elsewherebetween the landing zones, as represented by the distances B in FIG.12C.

FIGS. 10 and 1OA show an internal perspective view of the assembledgarment having the preferred fastening arrangement of the presentinvention. Other nonfastening structures are indicated which are similarto those discussed in conjunction with FIG. 2.

A preferred method for making the landing zones of the present inventionis further illustrated by reference to the exploded perspective view ofthe garment shown in FIG. 11. The method comprises the steps ofproviding an absorbent structure 32 adapted for absorbing and containingbody wastes and providing an elastomeric nonwoven outer cover 12 adaptedfor holding the absorbent structure 32 in a selected bodily registrationwhen the garment 10 is securely worn. The outer cover 12 is providedwith front 28 and rear 30 waist panels resiliently stretchable in across-body direction 41 and an intermediate crotch panel 16 separatesthe waist panels 28, 30 from one another, with a pair of sides 15extending between and interconnecting the waist panels. Delimited alongthe sides 15 are a pair of leg openings 16 which may be elasticallycontractible by means of the supplemental gathers 58 or may be sized sothat elastic expansibility is relied upon for appropriate leg fit.Fastening means, specifically the soft loop component 82, are providedon the internally-facing surfaces 78 of the rear pair of ears 20, 22.Inelastic landing zones 70 are appointed on given areas 72 of externalsurfaces 74 of the front pair of ears 24, 26, with hook components 84 ofthe fastening means provided on the landing zones 70, which are formedwith a selected shape and size. The landing zones 70 are then orientedand bonded, such as with the autogenous bonds 80 shown in FIG. 8A, ontothe given areas 72 of the external surfaces 74.

Also with reference to FIGS. 13-16, the subject fastening system isintegrated into the diaper design to function cooperatively with theother components of the diaper 10 and requires similar familiar handmotions as conventional tape systems, taking the same time to fasten. Italso utilizes materials with which users are comfortable and familiar,that is, snaps and hook and loop fasteners. The subject diaper fasteningsystem stays fastened, is refastenable, is contamination-free,contributes to the fit characteristics of the diaper and does not leavetell-tale red marks on the skin of a wearer. Moreover, the subjectfasteners rely more on the inherent stretch characteristics of the outercover by increasing the outer cover tension across the front waist panel28. They also more conveniently place the fastener target on the frontpanel 28 of the diaper 10 and offer an easy one-step closure. Theelongated ears 20, 22 are easily handled and apparent tightness of thegarment is reduced while offering a gentler waist and leg fit. Theinstant invention reduces droop and holds the absorbent structure in adesirable position against the wearer as seen in FIGS. 13, 14, 15 and,particularly in FIG. 16.

Turning now to the outer cover 12 of the present invention, which ispreferably made from a resiliently stretchable elastomeric nonwovenlaminar material having a stretchability of from about 20 percent toabout 200 percent. The term stretchability as used herein is defined bythe following relationship:

    stretchability =((final dimension- initial dimension)/ initial dimension)×100%

Since the outer cover 20 is also resilient, the outer cover returnsessentially to its initial dimension when the stretching force isremoved.

One such resiliently stretchable material is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.4,663,220 to Tony J. Wisneski and Michael T. Morman, assigned to theassignee of the present application, entitled "Polyolefin-containingExtrudable Compositions and Methods for their Formation Into ElastomericProducts", the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein byreference and relied upon. That patent provides extrudable elastomericcompositions which, after extrusion, solidify to form elastomericproducts such as, for example, fibrous nonwoven elastomeric webs. Theextrudable elastomeric compositions are blends of (1) from at leastabout 10 percent, by weight, of an A-B-A' block copolymer, where "A" and"A'" are each a thermoplastic polymer endblock which includes a styrenicmoiety such as a poly(vinyl arene) and where "B" is an elastomericpoly(ethylene-butylene) midblock, with (2) from greater than 0 percent,by weight, to about 90 percent, by weight, of a polyolefin which, whenblended with the A-B-A' block copolymer and subjected to appropriateelevated pressure and elevated temperature conditions, is extrudable, inblended form, with the A-B-A' block copolymer. The A-B-A' blockcopolymer serves to impart elastomeric properties to products formedfrom the extrudable composition and the presence of the polyolefin inthe blend serves to reduce the viscosity of the composition as comparedto the viscosity of the neat, that is, pure, A-B-A' block copolymer andthus enhances the extrudability of the composition.

Preferably, the "A" and "A'" thermoplastic styrenic moiety containingendblocks of the block copolymer are selected from the group includingpolystyrene and polystyrene homologs such as, for example,poly(alpha-methylstyrene). In some embodiments the "A"and "A'"thermoplastic styrenic moiety containing endblocks are identical.Preferably, the polyolefin is selected from the group including at leastone polymer selected from the group including polyethylene,polypropylene, polybutene, ethylene copolymers, propylene copolymers,butene copolymers or blends of two or more of these materials.

The blend usually includes from at least about 20 percent, by weight, toabout 95 percent, by weight, of the block copolymer and from at leastabout 5 percent, by weight, to about 80 percent, by weight, of thepolyolefin. For example, the blend may include from about 30 percent, byweight, to about 90 percent, by weight, of the block copolymer and fromabout 10 percent, by weight, to about 70 percent, by weight, of thepolyolefin. Preferably, the blend includes from about 50 percent, byweight, to about 90 percent, by weight, of the block copolymer and fromabout 10 percent, by weight, to about 50 percent, by weight, of thepolyolefin. For example, the blend may include from about 50 percent, byweight, to about 70 percent, by weight, of the block copolymer and fromabout 30 percent, by weight, to about 50 percent, by weight, of thepolyolefin. One blend includes about 60 percent, by weight, of thepolyolefin.

The extrudable composition is extruded or otherwise formed, such as, forexample, by molding, for example, injection molding, at an appropriate,that is effective, combination of elevated pressure and elevatedtemperature conditions. These conditions will vary depending on thepolyolefin utilized. For example, the extrudable composition should beextruded or otherwise formed at a temperature of at least about 125degrees Centigrade if polyethylene is utilized as the polyolefin in theblend or at least about 175 degrees Centigrade if polypropylene isutilized in the blend, for example, at a temperature of from at leastabout 290 degrees Centigrade to about 345 degrees Centigrade, morespecifically, at a temperature of from at least about 300 degreesCentigrade to about 335 degrees Centigrade, into elastomeric productssuch as, for example, elastomeric fibers, which may be collected as afibrous nonwoven elastomeric web.

Preferably the blends are extrudable within the above-definedtemperature ranges at elevated pressures within the die tip, (forexample, within the extrusion capillaries of a die tip having thirty (30) extrusion capillaries per lineal inch of die tip with each of thecapillaries having a diameter of 0.0145 inches and a length of 0.113inches) of no more than about 300 pounds per square inch, gage, forexample, from pressures of from about 20 pounds per square inch, gage,to about 250 pounds per square inch, gage. More specifically, the blendsare extrudable within the above-defined temperature ranges at pressuresof from about 50 pounds per square inch, gage, to about 250 pounds persquare inch, gage, for example, from about 125 pounds per square inch,gage, to about 225 pounds per square inch, gage. Higher elevatedpressures can be utilized with other die designs having a lower numberof capillaries per inch of die, but, generally speaking, lowerproduction rates result.

Importantly, it has been found that the extrudable compositions areextrudable at satisfactory throughput rates because the presence of thepolyolefin in the extrudable composition reduces the viscosity of theextrudable composition, as compared to the viscosity of the neat, thatis, pure, block copolymer, to satisfactory levels. This reducedviscosity proportionally reduces the die tip pressure if all otherparameters remain the same. For example, the viscosity of the extrudablecompositions will generally be less than about 500 poise when extrudedat the above-defined elevated temperature and elevated pressure ranges.Preferably, the viscosity of the extrudable composition is less thanabout 300 poise when extruded at the above-defined elevated temperaturesand elevated pressure ranges. For example, the viscosity of theextrudable composition may be from at least about 100 poise to about 200poise when extruded at the above-identified elevated temperature andelevated pressure conditions.

Because the polyolefin reduces the viscosity of the blend, as comparedto the viscosity of the block copolymer, the extrudable composition isextrudable within the above-identified elevated temperature and elevatedpressure ranges, through a die tip having, for example, thirtycapillaries per inch of die tip with the capillaries having a diameterof about 0.0145 inches and a length of about 0.113 inches at a rate offrom at least about 0.02 grams per capillary per minute to about 1.7 ormore grams per capillary per minute. For example, the extrudablecomposition may be extruded through the above-identified die tip havingcapillaries with a diameter of about 0.0145 inches and a length of about0.113 inches at the rate of from at least about 0.1 grams per capillaryper minute to about 1.25 grams per capillary per minute. Preferably, theextrudable composition is extrudable through the above-identified dietip having capillaries with a diameter of about 0.0145 inches and alength of about 0.113 inches at the rate of from at least about 0.3grams per capillary per minute to about 1.7 grams per capillary perminute.

The extrudable composition may be formed into fibrous nonwovenelastomeric webs preferably having microfibers with an average diameterof not greater than about 100 microns, and preferably having an averagebasis weight of not more than about 300 grams per square meter, forexample, an average basis weight of from about 5 grams per square meterto about 100 grams or more per square meter. More specifically, anaverage basis weight of from about 10 grams per square meter to about 75grams per square meter. For example, a fibrous nonwoven elastomeric webmay be formed by extruding the extrudable composition at an appropriate,that is, effective, combination of elevated temperature and elevatedpressure conditions. Preferably, the extrudable composition is extrudedat a temperature of from at least about 125 degrees Centigrade if thepolyolefin is polyethylene or at least about 175 degrees Centigrade ifthe polyolefin is polypropylene, for example, from about 290 degreesCentigrade to about 345 degrees Centigrade, more specifically from about300 degrees Centigrade to about 335 degrees Centigrade. Preferably, theextrudable composition is extruded within the above-identifiedtemperature ranges and pressures, within the die tip, (for example,within the extrusion capillaries of a die tip having thirty (30 )extrusion capillaries per lineal inch of die tip with each of thecapillaries having a diameter of about 0.0145 inches and a length of0.113 inches) of no more than about 300 pounds per square inch, gage,for example, from about 20 pounds per square inch, gage, to about 250pounds per square inch, gage. More specifically, the extrudablecomposition is extruded at a pressure within the capillaries of theabove-identified die tip of from about 50 pounds per square inch, gage,to about 250 pounds per square inch, gage, for example, from about 125pounds per square inch, gage, to about 225 pounds per square inch, gage.

In the formation of elastomeric nonwoven webs, the extrudablecomposition is extruded, at the above-defined elevated temperature andelevated pressure conditions at a rate of from at least about 0.02 gramper capillary per minute to about 1.7 or more grams per capillary perminute, for example, from at least about 0.1 gram per capillary perminute to about 1.25 grams per capillary per minute, more specifically,from at least about 0.3 gram per capillary per minute to about 1.1 gramsper capillary per minute, through a die having a plurality of smalldiameter extrusion capillaries, as molten threads into a gas streamwhich attenuates the molten threads to provide a gas-borne stream ofmicrofibers which are then formed into the fibrous nonwoven elastomericweb upon their deposition on a collecting arrangement. The attenuatinggas stream is applied to the molten threads at a temperature of from atleast about 100 degrees Centigrade to about 400 degrees Centigrade, forexample, from about 200 degrees Centigrade to about 350 degreesCentigrade and at a pressure of from at least about 0.5 pound per squareinch, gage, to about 20 pounds per square inch, gage, for example, fromat least about 1 pound per square inch, gage, to about 10 pounds persquare inch, gage. The thread attenuating gas stream may be an inert,non-oxidizing, gas stream such as, for example, a stream of nitrogengas. In some embodiments the velocity and temperature of thethread-attenuating gas stream is adjusted so that the fibers arecollected as substantially continuous fibers having diameters of fromabout ten (10) microns to about sixty (60 ) microns, for example, fromat least about ten (10) microns to about forty (40) microns. The fibrousnonwoven elastomeric webs so formed will include elastomeric fiberscomposed of from at least about 10 percent, by weight, of the blockcopolymer and greater than 0 percent, by weight, and up to about 90percent, by weight, of the polyolefin. The fibers are usually composedfrom at least about 20 percent, by weight, to about 95 percent, byweight, of the block copolymer and from at least about 5 percent, byweight, to about 80 percent, by weight of the polyolefin. For example,the fibers may be composed from at least about 30 percent, by weight, toabout 90 percent, by weight, of the block copolymer and from at leastabout 10 percent, by weight, to about 70 percent, by weight, of thepolyolefin. Preferably, the fibers are composed from about 50 percent,by weight, to about 90 percent, by weight, of the block copolymer andfrom at least about 10 percent, by weight, to about 50 percent, byweight, of the polyolefin. For example, the fibers may be composed fromat least about 50 percent, by weight, to about 70 percent, by weight, ofthe block copolymer and from at least about 30 percent, by weight, toabout 50 percent, by weight, of the polyolefin.

Another such resiliently stretchable material is disclosed in U.S. Pat.application, Ser. No. 760,437 in the name of Jack D. Taylor and MichaelJ. Vander Wielen and assigned to the assignee of the presentapplication, entitled "Composite Elastomeric Material and Process forMaking the Same", the entire disclosure of which is incorporated hereinby reference and relied upon. That application provides a method ofproducing a composite elastic material comprising at least onegatherable web bonded to at least one elastic web, the method comprising(a) tensioning an elastic web (which may comprise a fibrous web such asa nonwoven web of elastomeric fibers, for example, meltblown elastomericfibers) to elongate it; (b) bonding the elongated elastic web to atleast one gatherable web under conditions which soften at least portionsof the elastic web to form a bonded composite web; and (c) relaxing thecomposite web immediately after the bonding step whereby the gatherableweb is gathered to form the composite elastic material. The fibrouselastic web can also be maintained in a stretched condition during thebonding, at an elongation of at least about 25 percent, preferably about25 percent to over 500 percent, for example, about 25 percent to 550percent elongation during the bonding. The method also includes bondingthe elongated elastic web to the gatherable web by overlaying theelastic and gatherable webs and applying heat and pressure to theoverlaid webs, for example, by heating bonding sites on the elastic webto a temperature of from at least about 65 degrees Centigrade to about120 degrees Centigrade, preferably from at least about 70 degreesCentigrade to about 90 degrees Centigrade.

That application also provides an elastic composite material comprisingan elastic web bonded to at least one gatherable web which is extensibleand contractible with the elastic web upon stretching and relaxing ofthe composite material, the elastic composite material being made by amethod as described above. Also provided is an elastic web that isbonded to the gatherable web at a plurality of spaced-apart locations ina repeating pattern and the gatherable web is gathered between thebonded locations. The elastic web may comprise a nonwoven web ofelastomeric fibers, preferably elastomeric microfibers, such as, forexample, an elastomeric nonwoven web of meltblown elastomeric fibers oran elastomeric film.

The elastic composite material may include one or more of the followingin any combination: the elastomeric fibers, preferably meltblownelastomeric fibers, may be formed from material selected from the groupincluding (i) A-B-A' block copolymers wherein "A" and "A'" may be thesame or different endblocks and each is a thermoplastic polymer endblockor segment which contains a styrenic moiety such as polystyrene orpolystyrene homologs, and "B" is an elastomeric polymer midblock orsegment, for example, a midblock selected from the group includingpoly(ethylene-butylene), polyisoprene and polybutadiene, withpoly(ethylene-butylene) being preferred and (ii) blends of one or morepolyolefins with the A-B-A' block copolymers of (i) where "B" is apoly(ethylene-butylene) midblock; each of the "A" and "A'" endblocks maybe selected from the group consisting of polystyrene and polystyrenehomologs, for example, poly(alpha methylstyrene), and where theelastomeric fibers are formed from a blend of one or more polyolefinswith an A-B-A' block copolymer where "B" is a poly(ethylene-butylene)midblock, the polyolefin is selected from one or more of polyethylene,polypropylene, polybutene, ethylene copolymers, propylene copolymers andbutene copolymers; the elastomeric film and the elastomeric fibers whichform the elastomeric nonwoven web, for example, the meltblownmicrofibers, are composed of at least 10 percent, for example at least20 percent, more specifically at least 30 percent, for example, fromabout 10 percent to 90 percent, by weight, of the aforesaid A-B-A' blockcopolymers and greater than 0 percent, by weight, for example, fromabout 90 percent to about 10 percent, by weight, of the polyolefin; theelastic web, for example, a fibrous elastic web, is bonded to thegatherable web at a plurality of spaced-apart locations in a repeatingpattern and the gatherable web is gathered between the bonded locations;the elastic web preferably has a low basis weight of from about 5 toabout 300, preferably from about 5 to about 200, grams per square meter,for example, from about 5 to about 100 grams per square meter, althoughits basis weight can be much higher; the gatherable web is a nonwoven,non-elastic material, preferably one composed of fibers formed frommaterials selected from the group including polyester fibers, forexample, poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers, polyolefin fibers,polyamide fibers, for example, nylon fibers, cellulosic fibers, forexample, cotton fibers, and mixtures thereof. Alternatively, thegatherable web may be any suitable woven fabric. In a particular aspect,the composition of the A-B-A' polymer used is such that the sum of themolecular weight of "A" with the molecular weight of "A'" is from about14 to 31percent (from about 14 to 29 percent when "B" ispoly(ethylene-butylene)) of the molecular weight of the A-B-A' blockcopolymer.

A further such resiliently stretchable material is disclosed in U.S.Pat. No. 4,657,802 to Michael J. Morman, assigned to the assignee of thepresent invention and entitled "Composite Nonwoven Elastic Web" , theentire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference andrelied upon. That patent is directed to a process for producing acomposite nonwoven elastic web which is composed of a nonwoven elasticweb that is joined to a fibrous nonwoven gathered web. In particular,the process disclosed therein produces a composite nonwoven elastic webwhich, in its relaxed, nonstretched state, is composed of a gatherednonwoven fibrous web that is joined to a nonwoven elastic web with thenonwoven elastic web having been relaxed from a stretched, biased lengthto a relaxed, unbiased, nonstretched length so as to gather the fibrousnonwoven gathered web. An important feature of the process disclosedtherein is that the fibrous nonwoven gatherable web is formed directlyonto a surface of the nonwoven elastic web while the nonwoven elasticweb is maintained in a stretched, biased and elongated condition. Thenonwoven elastic web may be formed by, for example, a meltblowingprocess or any other process for forming a nonwoven elastic web. Forexample, the nonwoven elastic web could be an apertured web of anelastic film as opposed to a meltblown fibrous nonwoven elastic web. Theformed nonwoven elastic web has a normal relaxed, nonstretched,nonbiased length. Thereafter, the nonwoven elastic web is elongated bybeing stretched to a stretched, biased length. In a subsequent step ofthe process a fibrous nonwoven gatherable web may be formed, forexample, by either a meltblowing or spunbonding process or any otherprocess for forming a fibrous nonwoven gatherable web, directly upon asurface of the nonwoven elastic web while the nonwoven elastic web ismaintained at its elongated, stretched and biased length. Duringformation of the fibrous nonwoven gatherable web the nonwoven elasticweb is maintained at a stretched length which is at least about125percent, that is, at least about one and one quarter of the relaxed,unbiased length of the nonwoven elastic web. For example, the stretched,biased length of the nonwoven elastic web may be maintained in the rangeof from at least about 125 percent of the relaxed, unbiased length ofthe nonwoven elastic web to about 700 or more percent of the relaxed,unbiased length of the nonwoven elastic web. The fibrous nonwovengatherable web is joined to the nonwoven elastic web while the nonwovenelastic web is maintained at its elongated stretched, biased length.This results in the formation of a composite nonwoven elastic web whichincludes the nonwoven elastic web which is joined to the fibrousnonwoven gatherable web. Because the fibrous nonwoven gatherable web isformed directly onto the surface of the nonwoven elastic web while thenonwoven elastic web is being maintained at its stretched, biasedlength, the nonwoven elastic web is, at this stage in the process,elongated, stretched and biased and the fibrous nonwoven gatherable webis in an ungathered but gatherable condition. In one aspect, the joiningof the fibrous nonwoven gatherable web to the nonwoven elastic web isachieved by heat-bonding to fuse the two webs to each other. Theheat-bonding may be carried out within the temperature range of fromabout 50 degrees centigrade below the melt temperature of at least oneof the materials utilized to form at least one of the two webs to aboutthe melt temperature of at least one of the materials utilized to format least one of the two webs. At high through-put rates the heat-bondingcan be carried out above the melt temperature of one or more of thematerials utilized to form the webs. The heat-bonding may also becarried out under appropriate conventional pressurized conditions. Ifdesired, conventional sonic bonding techniques may be substituted forthe heat-bonding steps.

The patent also discloses another embodiment whereby the joining of thefibrous nonwoven gatherable web to the stretched nonwoven elastic web isachieved solely by the entanglement of the individual fibers of thefibrous nonwoven gatherable web with the nonwoven elastic web duringformation of the fibrous gatherable web on the surface of the elasticweb. If the nonwoven elastic web is a fibrous nonwoven elastic webformed by, for example, meltblowing, entanglement of the individualfibers of the fibrous nonwoven gatherable web with the fibrous nonwovenelastic web is achieved by entanglement of the individual fibers of thefibrous gatherable web with the individual fibers of the fibrous elasticweb. If the nonwoven elastic web is an apertured film, joining of thefibrous nonwoven web with the film is achieved by entanglement of theindividual fibers of the fibrous gatherable web within the apertures ofthe film. The joining of the two webs to each other can also be achievedby forming the nonwoven elastic web out of a tacky elastic material, aprocess that will be discussed hereinafter. In addition, the joining ofthe two webs to each other may be further enhanced by applying pressureto the two webs after the gatherable web has been formed on the surfaceof the elastic web. Further improvement in the joining of the two webscan be obtained by applying an adhesive material to the upper surface ofthe nonwoven elastic web prior to formation of the fibrous nonwovengatherable web thereon.

After joining of the two webs to each other has been achieved to form acomposite elastic web, the biasing force is removed from the compositenonwoven elastic web and the composite elastic web is allowed to relaxto its normal relaxed, unbiased length. Because the fibrous nonwovengatherable web is joined to the nonwoven elastic web while the nonwovenelastic web is stretched, relaxation of the composite nonwoven elasticweb results in the gatherable web being carried with the contractingnonwoven elastic web and thus being gathered. After gathering of thefibrous nonwoven gatherable web has occurred by reducing the biasingforce on the composite nonwoven elastic web, the composite nonwovenelastic web may be rolled up in rolls for storage and shipment ofdirected to a manufacturing process for the production of products suchas the disposable garments taught by the present application.

As indicated above, the process disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,657,802 canbe enhanced by the utilization of a tacky fibrous nonwoven elastic webwhich can be formed by, for example, meltblowing microfibers of a tackyelastic material such as, for example, an A-B-A' block copolymer orblends of such A-B-A' block copolymers with poly(alpha-methylstyrene)where "A" and "A'" are each thermoplastic polystyrene or polystyrenehomolog endblocks and "B" is an elastic polyisoprene midblock. In someembodiments "A" may be the same thermoplastic polystyrene or polystyrenehomolog endblock as "A'". The tacky fibrous nonwoven elastic web is thenelongated by being stretched to an elongated, stretched length and afibrous nonwoven gatherable web is formed, for example, by meltblowingor spunbonding the fibrous nonwoven gatherable web, directly upon asurface of the tacky fibrous nonwoven elastic web while maintaining thefibrous nonwoven elastic web at its stretched length. As a result of thefact that the fibrous nonwoven elastic web is tacky, the fibrousnonwoven gatherable web is simultaneously formed upon and adhesivelyjoined to the surface of the tacky fibrous nonwoven elastic web. Thisresults in the formation of a composite nonwoven elastic web having anungathered fibrous gatherable web adhesively joined to the tacky fibrousnonwoven elastic web with the joining of the two webs to each otherbeing achieved by the adhesive joining which occurs during formation ofthe fibrous nonwoven gatherable web on the surface of the fibrousnonwoven elastic web. The adhesive joining of the two webs to each othermay be increased upon application of pressure to the composite nonwovenelastic web by passing the composite nonwoven elastic web through thenip between rollers, which may be unheated, after the composite web hasbeen formed but before the fibrous tacky nonwoven elastic web is allowedto relax. The adhesive joining may be further enhanced by application ofan adhesive material to the surface of the tacky fibrous nonwovenelastic web prior to formation of the gatherable web thereon. Thecomposite nonwoven elastic web is then allowed to relax to its normalrelaxed, unbiased length. Because the fibrous nonwoven gatherable web isjoined to the tacky fibrous nonwoven elastic web while the tacky fibrousnonwoven elastic web is in a stretched condition, relaxation of thecomposite nonwoven elastic web and thus the tacky fibrous nonwovenelastic web results in the gatherable web being carried with thecontracting fibrous nonwoven elastic web and thus being gathered. Aftergathering of the fibrous nonwoven gatherable web has occurred thecomposite nonwoven elastic web may be rolled up in rolls for storage ordirectly applied to a manufacturing process for the production ofdisposable garments such as the disposable garments taught by thepresent application.

The U.S. Pat. No. 4,657,802 is also directed to a composite nonwovenelastic web composed of a nonwoven elastic web that is joined to agatherable fibrous nonwoven web which has been gathered and with thecomposite web having been formed by any of the embodiments of theprocess disclosed above. In particular, the composite nonwoven elasticweb, in its relaxed, nonstretched state, is composed of a nonwovenelastic web that is joined to a fibrous nonwoven gathered web which hasbeen gathered as a result of the nonwoven elastic web having beenrelaxed from an elongated stretched, biased length to a relaxed,unbiased nonstretched length. Exemplary elastomeric materials for use information of the fibrous nonwoven elastic web include polyesterelastomeric materials, polyurethane elastomeric materials, and polyamideelastomeric materials. Other elastomeric materials for use in formationof the fibrous nonwoven elastic web include (a) A-B-A' block copolymers,where "A" and "A'" are each a thermoplastic polymer endblock whichincludes a styrenic moiety and where "A"may be the same thermoplasticpolymer endblock as "A'", such as a poly(vinyl arene), and where "B" isan elastomeric polymer midblock such as a conjugated diene or a loweralkene or (b) blends of one or more polyolefins or poly(alpha-methylstyrene) with A-B-A' block copolymers, where "A" and " A'" are each athermoplastic polymer endblock which includes a styrenic moiety, where"A" may be the same thermoplastic polymer endblock as "A'", such as apoly(vinyl arene) and where "B" is an elastomeric polymer midblock suchas a conjugated diene or a lower alkene. The "A" and "A'" endblocks maybe selected from the group including polystyrene and polystyrenehomologs and the "B" midblock may be selected from the group includingpolyisoprene, polybutadiene or poly(ethylene-butylene). If "A" and "A'"are selected from the group including polystyrene or polystyrenehomologs and "B" is poly(ethylene-butylene), materials which may beblended with these block copolymers are polymers, including copolymersof ethylene, propylene, butene, other lower alkenes or one or more ofthese materials. If "A" and "A'" are selected from the group includingpolystyrene or polystyrene homologs and "B" is a polyisoprene midblock,a material for blending with this type of block copolymer ispoly(alpha-methylstyrene).

U.S. Pat. application Ser. No. 919,901, in the name of J. S. Kieffer andTony J. Wisneski, assigned to the assignee of the present application,entitled "Extrudable Composition for Forming Nonwoven Web orPressure-Sensitive Elastomer Adhesive, and Use of Such ExtrudableComposition in Forming Nonwoven Webs and Stretch-Bonded Laminates," theentire disclosure which is incorporated herein by reference and reliedupon, discloses another such resiliently stretchable material. In thisapplication, there is disclosed an extrudable composition for formingnonwoven elastomeric material having pressure-sensitive adhesiveproperties, nonwoven elastomeric sheet material, for example, fibrousnonwoven webs, formed of such composition, stretch-bonded laminatesusing such sheets and methods of forming such sheets in such laminates.The composition includes an elastomeric polymer and a tackifying resin,and can also include a polyolefin. The nonwoven sheet material can be ameltblown nonwoven web and the laminate can be formed by tensioning theelastomeric sheet material and bonding a gatherable web, for example, aspunbonded polypropylene web, to the tensioned sheet material byapplication of pressure, the bonding being accomplished due to theadhesivity of the elastomeric sheet material and without application ofheat for softening the sheet material and/or gatherable web. Theincreased tackiness imparted to the elastomeric sheet by this internaltackifying agent resists in a composite web which resists delamination.

As used in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,657,802,and as contemplated herein, theterm "nonwoven web" or "nonwoven layer" includes any web of materialwhich has been formed without use of textile weaving processes whichproduce a structure of individual fibers which are interwoven in anidentifiable repeating manner. Specific examples of nonwoven webs wouldinclude, without limitation, a meltblown nonwoven web, a spunbondednonwoven web, an apertured film, a microporous web, elastomeric nettingor a carded web of staple fibers.

It is to be clearly understood that the descriptions of methods formaking a material suitable for outer cover 12 and the description ofmaterials suitable for the outer cover 12 are exemplary only and notmeant to be limiting.

The bodyside liner 34 may be airlaid, a bonded carded web, apowder-bonded carded web or a pattern bonded, spunbonded web ofsynthetic fibers such as polypropylene, polyester and the like.

Various materials are contemplated for use as the absorbent core 38,including fibrous materials, foams, particulates, etc. In general, themost economical liquid absorbent material for use in disposable diapershas been an absorbent fiber. The absorbent fiber most commonly used iscellulosic fiber such as comminuted wood pulp, commonly known in the artas "pulp fluff ," or simply "fluff."

Comminuted wood pulp (fluff) is preferred as an absorbent fiber, butother cellulose fibers such as cotton linters can be used. The preferredfluff is southern pine kraft wood pulp (i.e., made according to thesulfate process commonly known in the art) which has been bleached, suchas can be purchased from International Paper Company. Other softwoodfluffs may be purchased from Kimberly-Clark Corporation, such as CR-54.Various hardwood fluffs may also be blended with the softwood fluffs toform the absorbent composite. A water-swellable hydrogel material,preferably in particulate form, may be used in a number of variousarrangements within the absorbent composite in order to decrease thebulkiness and enhance the capacity of the composite 38. Many suchhydrogel materials are known and available to those skilled in the art.It should be understood that additional elements could be provided inconjunction with those already set forth, without departing from thecontemplated scope of the present invention and the description hereinis not intended to be in any way limiting.

We claim:
 1. A method of making a fixed fastener landing zone on anelastomeric surface of a garment, said method comprising the stepsof:(a) providing an elastomeric nonwoven outer cover adapted forselected bodily registration; (b) providing said outer cover with frontand rear waist panels resiliently stretchable in a direction essentiallytransverse to a longitudinal axis of said outer cover; (c) providingsaid outer cover with an intermediate crotch panel separating said waistpanels from one another, with a pair of sides extending between andinterconnecting said waist panels, delimiting a pair of elasticallycontractible leg openings along said sides of said crotch panel anddelimiting a front and a rear longitudinally opposed pair of earsseparated from one another by said crotch panel and comprising outermostlateral portions of said front and rear waist panels, respectively,wherein corresponding ones of said front and rear pairs of ears areengageable with one another to define an elastically contractible waistopening; (d) providing said rear pair of ears with elongated shapespresenting first surfaces superposable on second surfaces of said frontpair of ears; (e) providing first fastening means on said first surfacesof said rear pair of ears; (f) forming inelastic landing zones on saidsecond surfaces of said front ears and providing second fastening meanson said landing zones that are releasably engageable with said firstfastening means on said first surfaces of said rear ears, said inelasticlanding zones tapering in dimension, in a decreasing manner, towards thelongitudinal axis of said outer cover, whereby the formed inelasticlanding zones selectively restrict the stretchability of said secondsurfaces and provide a tensile force distribution pattern across saidfront waist panel which directs tensile stresses away from said leg andwaist openings while providing a band of abdominal support across saidfront waist panel between said landing zones when said outer cover issecurely worn.
 2. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps ofshaping said landing zones in generally triangular configurations andorienting said landing zones with respect to one another so that an areaof highest tension is created in said band of abdominal support along aminimum distance between respective apexes of said landing zones thatare equidistantly spaced on opposed sides of longitudinal axis.
 3. Themethod of claim 1 further comprising the step of providing respectivemechanical fastening means on said first and said second surfaces. 4.The method of claim 3 wherein said first and said second fastening meansare hook and loop fasteners.
 5. The method of claim 1 further comprisingthe step of forming a pattern of autogenous bonds surrounding saidlanding zones.
 6. The method of claim 5 wherein the step of forming isby ultrasonically forming the pattern of bonds.
 7. The method of claim 1wherein the step of providing an elastomeric nonwoven outer coverfurther includes providing an elastomeric nonwoven outer cover that isresiliently stretchable from about 20 percent to about 200 percent. 8.The method of claim 1 wherein the step of providing an elastomericnonwoven outer cover further includes providing an elastomeric nonwovenouter cover that is breathable.
 9. The method of claim 1 wherein thestep of providing an elastomeric nonwoven outer cover further includesforming said outer cover as a stretchbonded laminate by joining anelastic layer to at least one gatherable layer.